Plans to end free evening parking in Newcastle scaled back after public uproar

Controversial plans to end free evening parking in Newcastle have been revised after a consultation attracted hundreds of objections.

Newcastle City Council had planned to end the 'Alive After 5' scheme, which saw free parking offered in multi-storey car parks and general parking bays after 5pm.

This came after funding for the scheme, provided by the business improvement district organisation NE1, was withdrawn.

Initial proposals pushed the scheme back to 10pm, a decision heavily criticised particularly by those with stakes in the nighttime economy.

The council issued a public consultation which received roughly 650 objections and just 25 positive responses.

As a result, they have scaled back the proposal to 7pm.

Plans to scrap the the £3 per day fixed charge on Sundays and replace it with the standard hourly rate have remained in place.

Cllr Jane Byrne, cabinet member for connected city, said: "We’ve listened to the feedback from the public, and looked again at how we can better manage parking in the city centre and still create a greener and more sustainable city, which works for everyone.

"This means balancing the needs of lots of competing demands, including changes to how people shop and businesses operate since the pandemic, and we believe that these changes will help us to achieve the right balance."

Issues raised in the consultation included the impact on the city centre economy, lack of public transport in the evening, as well as feelings of personal safety.

The new charges will come into force in the coming weeks once the council has completed the statutory processes and updated signage across all car parks. It is expected this will be completed by August 2022.

Affected car parks include:

• Eldon Square

• Eldon Garden

• Dean Street

• Oxford Street

• Grainger Town